Every one of the gymnasts who went to National Qualifiers (国家冠军赛资格赛) showed up with that goal in mind. Everyone gave it their all.
And I hate admitting it, but I was an exception. I did not do my best. Not for the ribbon exercise, nor for the club exercise. Knowing that I could have reached a little further to catch my ribbon, focused a little more so the stick wouldn’t slip through my fingers, tried a little harder to clean up those errors, but I didn’t, still bothers me.
After my disappointing competition, I tried my best to keep my eyes dry. But soon tears burned the edges of my eyes, and as I blinked, the first tear rolled down my cheek. Even though I angrily wiped my tears away before she looked at me, the evidence of my self-pity session presented itself clearly in the form of dirty makeup and reddened eyes.
My mom hated to see me cry, especially because I had no right or reason to. I had messed up--that wasn’t anyone’s fault but mine--and crying wouldn’t help at all. “Why are you crying, Amanda?” she asked, perhaps more pointedly (尖刻地) than intended, but I heard the concern in her voice. Unable to form all the emotions into words, I just looked away and avoided her questions.
“Tell me now why you’re crying.” Her voice this time wasn’t as gentle as it was before; it was filled with frustration and impatience. “Why are you crying?” she whispered again, but this time her voice was shaky and flooded with pain. This was the first time I’d ever seen my mom cry; my mom, who was always so strong and was there to encourage me through the roughest times, was now crying, and I was the reason for it. Finding my voice, I tentatively asked, “Why are you crying?”
She looked at me and answered exactly what I was afraid to hear, “I hate to see you hurting yourself.” So it was my fault. I had put those tears in her eyes. I had filled her with pain, with helplessness and with sadness.
I’ll never forget her pained expression. It forced me to realize how shortsighted and close-minded I’d been. I decided that no matter what happens in the future, I will never lose myself to regret.Why did Amanda feel regretful after the competition?
| A．Because she wasn’t admitted to the club. |
| B．Because she dropped her ribbon suddenly. |
| C．Because she broke the rule of the competition. |
| D．Because she didn’t try her best to compete. |
What did Amanda try to hide on the way back?
| A．Her silent tears. |
| B．The disappointing scores. |
| C．Her dirty makeup. |
| D．The evidence of failure. |
Which words reflect the change of the mother’s emotions?
| A．Painful--impatient—concerned |
| B．Concerned--frustrated--painful |
| C．Satisfied--painful—frustrated |
| D．Frustrated--angry--painful |
What did Amanda determine to do?
| A．Never cry in face of her mom. |
| B．Never compete as a gymnast. |
| C．Never involve herself in self-pity. |
| D．Never make up before games. |
The best title of the passage is probably _________.
| A．My painful experience as a gymnast |
| B．The tears I wiped away for my mother |
| C．The fiercest competition I lost |
| D．The worst thing I ever felt: regret |
A lot of small business owners put themselves in an embarrassed position in their own companies．Consider this scene：the company owner who has thirty individuals working for him in the business does all the work．
Stop the actual wrong belief that you’re the only one who can do the JOB!
You are an individual．A robot or machine must rest, or be changed．The best way to replace yourself is not through someone else，but with a System! A system or program doesn’t always make reference to something high-tech．It’s more about the actual administration process flow that gets issues running smoothly．
Systemizing your business is vitally important for the success of the company．About 80％of what’s completed in your business can be systemized．Take a moment to determine all of the routine things that are done in your company．Now record the best way to achieve these duties．
However，creating systems isn’t enough．You have to ensure that the methods are simple to follow，and easy to complete．If you do not allow it to be easy，it won’t be done，or at best it won’t be consistent．
With systems and processes in position．it’s simply using a few people to operate individual systems．A great number of companies that possess established systems have made great achievements through the years．Burger King is a good actual life example．
To construct a great business，replace yourself with a good program right now!What does“an embarrassed position”in Paragraph 1refer to?
| A．The employees are made to do all the work． |
| B．Business owners get caught in the trap of doing everything． |
| C．Nobody would like to work for business owners． |
| D．There are not enough employees in the company． |
What does the underlined sentence in Paragraph 3 imply?
| A．It’s necessary for the company owner to do all the work． |
| B．A robot or machine shall not keep working． |
| C．The company owner should learn to rest． |
| D．A system is important for the company． |
Which of the following is true about“A system”?
| A．It can deal with a11 the routines in the business． |
| B．It is simple to follow or complete a system． |
| C．Your company will be successful so long as you have a system. |
| D．It will help a company run smoothly． |
What is the best advice to the business owners?
| A．Doing all the work by themselves． |
| B．Buying advanced robots or machines． |
| C．Using a good system to operate a company． |
| D．Introducing higher technologies． |
When asked to list typical English gentlemen，for many，Colin Firth immediately comes to mind．
In his recent film，Kingsman：The Secret Service，the 54-year-old actor appears as elegant and violent super spy Harry Hart．One minute he’s calm and polite，and then in the next he’s skillfully violent and aggressive．For example，in one scene he says，“Manners maketh a man”，before severely beating up a group of villains(坏人)．Firth brings out the perfect mix of typical British style and humor through this performance．
Firth began appearing on English TV in the early 1990s，but it wasn’t until he played Mr Darcy，a charming upper class character from Jane Austen’s famous novel“Pride and Prejudice”，that Firth’s career really took off．His portrayal(形象)of the perfect fictional gentleman conquered millions of hearts，especially females’．
In many fans and critics’eyes，Firth has British good looks，British charm，and a gift for characters with a British sense of being reserved(矜持)．Movie reviewer Jason O’Bryan described Firth as“always befitting the calm and stiff-upper-lip British gentlemen character”．
However Firth doesn’t consider himself the authority on gentlemen．“I don’t necessarily approach every challenge like a perfect English gentleman spy．There are many aspects in my personality that are not consistent with someone like Harry Hart，”he said to Dialogue，an English—language show on CCTV News．
But let’s just take his words as another gentlemanly quality-modesty．After all，who might expect an Oscar-winning actor over 50 years old to learn to fight for his first action movie?
To prepare for Kingsman，Firth trained for three hours every day over six months．He broke a tooth and got bruised everywhere，but took the damage as a symbol of his accomplishments．
In Dialogue，Firth said he had many other sides-he’s passionate about literature and literary research．However，to many of his movie fans, he is indeed a gentleman and excellent actor above a11 else. The example given in Paragraph 2 is _____________．
| A．to describe the character of Harry Hart |
| B．to introduce one scene of Kingsman |
| C．to prove Colin Firth a gentleman |
| D．to compare Colin Firth with Harry Hart |
When did Firth come to be famous?
| A．In the early 1990s． |
| B．After he played Mr Darcy． |
| C．When he was 54 years old． |
| D．During his childhood． |
From the text we can infer ______________．
| A．Colin Firth is violent and aggressive |
| B．Colin Firth has many sides in personality |
| C．Colin Firth has similar character to Harry Hart |
| D．Colin Firth has more male fans than females |
Which of the following might be the best title for the text?
| A．An authority on English gentlemen |
| B．A famous actor |
| C．A charming upper class character |
| D．A super spy |
The latest fashion in the kitchen is the food steamer．All the stores are selling them；everyone wants one．Steaming is one of the simplest and healthiest ways of cooking food．However，that cooking time is usually longer than with other methods．In case you’re thinking of buying a steamer，I’ve done a survey about the steamers available on the market to help you decide which will suit you best．
Folding Steamer
The simplest and least expensive is the folding stainless-steel(不锈钢)version．
Advantages：This is a good，basic design which sits inside a variety of different shapes of pans with the water under it；a ring in the centre allows for easy lifting and it's easy to clean．
Disadvantages：It only holds small dishes．Also，if you put too much water in the pan，it will boil up through the vegetables and they will be watery．If you put too little water in and let it get dry，you will burn the pan and get strange-smelling vegetables．
Steaming Pan
This is a three-layered black Teflon-coated version with a lid and two double-handled steamers，which sits on the oven ring．The brand I bought is called Nutritious Living．
Advantages：This is an excellent steamer, lightweight，easy to clean，and of all the steamers I’ve tried，this cooks the fastest．Fish and chicken can be cooked on the bottom with rice or vegetables on the top．It’s easier to store．
Disadvantages：Water can boil away until the pan is dry，but if you make sure you fill the pan up to the suggested level and do not overcook the food，this should not happen．You cannot see the food cooking from the top．It doesn’t supply a dish for cooking rice．
For serious users of steamers，I recommend having one of each version．If you just want to try it，get the folding stainless-steel type．The food steamer is popular with people because ________________．
| A．it can save time and money |
| B．food can be cooked simply and healthily |
| C．it is easy to clean and store |
| D．it is available in any store |
Which of the following is true about the folding steamers?
| A．They are cheap and easy to use． |
| B．They are difficult to clean． |
| C．They can hold all kinds of dishes． |
| D．You can put little water in the pan． |
When you use the steaming pan，_________
| A．you can overcook the food |
| B．you can only cook rice |
| C．you feel it’s heavy to carry |
| D．you should pour proper amount of water |
Three Japanese tourists taking a holiday in Australia got stuck when their GPS told them they could drive from the mainland to an island，failing to mention the 15 kilometres of water and mud in between．
As they drove their hired car from Moreton Bay to nearby North Stradbroke Island，they started to notice the firm surface they were driving on giving way to the well-known bay mud．However, being confident that their GPS would direct them to a road soon，they decided to drive on，managing to travel around 500 metres before their car was up to its tires in mud．To make matters worse，the tide(潮汐)started to come in and soon forced them to seek help and abandon the vehicle．Just four hours later the car was trapped in,two metres of water—to the great amusement of onlookers on the shore and passengers on passing boats and ferries．
Yuzu Noda,21，said she was listening to the GPS and“it told us we could drive down there．It kept saying it would navigate(导航)us to a road．But we got stuck…there’s lots of mud．”She and her travel companions Tomonari Saeki，22，and Keita Osada,21，instead had to give up their plans for a day trip to the island and headed back to the Gold Coast of a lift from the RACQ tow truck(吊车)driver who was called to the trapped car．No such luck for the hired car though—after assessing the situation，no attempt was made to recover it. The students from Tokyo，who are due to return home tomorrow, said the experience would not put them off returning to Australia for another visit．Mr．Tomonari said，“It has rained every day on our six day holiday．Hopefully next time we come back it will be sunny.”
The car was covered by insurance,but the tourists will have to pay up to about$1 500 in extra charges．The three Japanese tourists got stuck because________．
| A．there was no way to the island |
| B．their GPS had given the wrong information |
| C．their GPS was broken during their journey |
| D．their car was not made in Japan |
They didn’t abandon their car until___________．
| A．some onlookers went to save them |
| B．they got stuck in the mud |
| C．there came the tide |
| D．they managed to travel around 500 metres |
How did these Japanese students get back?
| A．They had to walk back to their living place． |
| B．They had to repair their GPS and drove back． |
| C．They had to turn to pass engers on boats and ferries． |
| D．They had to take a lift from the tow truck driver． |
From the passage we can know that__________．
| A．The car was left where it was trapped |
| B．The passengers saved these students in the end |
| C．Mr．Tomonari got very down after the journey |
| D．No money has to be paid thanks to insurance |
They are the little sweeties who look pretty cute in a photo，or when sleeping——but a lot less appealing at 30，000 ft，crying loudly in the seat fight next to you．
According to a new survey，almost seven in ten Britons dislike flying with babies so much that they would like to see child-free areas introduced on planes．As for long-distance flights where people want to sleep，almost one in four British travelers believes that no-kid-zones should be fixed as required sections．
The survey was conducted by bookings website LateDeals．co．uk，with 1，108 UK consumers questioned as to what they hate most about air travel．
And our dislike of noisy children and babies on planes runs deep．it seems．
More than a third of us—35 per cent—would pay extra to travel on a childless service．
Long-distance passengers would be prepared to pay an additional ￡63 to the cost of a return ticket if it meant adults only on board．And on short-distance flights，an extra ￡28 on the price of a return fare would be considered good value if it guaranteed an absence of angry babies in the middle of the economy-class aisle(走道)．
However，screaming babies are not the only source of annoyance for British travellers．In fact，according to the research on the most annoying types of airline passengers，a crying baby ranks as only the fourth．Over half of those surveyed—58 percent—selected ‘drunk travellers’ as their pet peeves．People with‘bad personal hygiene(卫生)’and travellers who kick the back of the seat in front were also near the top of the list，causing anger to 48 and 47 per cent of us respectively(分别地)．
Crying babies came in at fourth on the list，a pet peeve for 43 per cent of those surveyed．Britons dislike flying with babies because they_________．
| A．make too much noise |
| B．get angry easily |
| C．sleep right next to them |
| D．stay in the economy-class aisle |
How many British travellers surveyed would like to have no-kid-zones on planes?
| A．About 35％． | B．About 43％． |
| C．About 70％． | D．About 58％． |
What kind of passengers is most disliked by British airline travellers?
| A．The crying babies on a flight． |
| B．People with bad personal hygiene． |
| C．Those who have drunk too much alcohol． |
| D．Those who kick the back of the seat in front |